Ngaio Marsh - Overture to Death

Miss Wright was the large young lady whom Alleyn had encountered in the rectory hall. Under a mackintosh she wore a plushy sort of dress with a hint of fur about it. Her head was indeed a mass of curls. Her face was crimson and her eyes black.

“Good-evening, Miss Wright,” said Alleyn. “I’m afraid we’ve put you to a lot of trouble. Will you sit down?”

He gave her his own chair and sat on the edge of the desk.

Miss Wright backed up to the chair rather in the manner of a draught-horse, got half-way towards sitting on it, but thought better of this, and giggled.

“Sergeant Roper tells us you’ve got some information for us,” continued Alleyn.

“Aw him!” said Miss Wright. She laughed and covered her mouth with her hand.

“Now I understand that you arrived at the parish hall at half-past six last night. Is that right?”

“That’s right.”

“Sure of the time?”

“Yass,” said Miss Wright. “I heard the clock strike, see?”

“Good. How did you get in?”

“I got the key from outside and came in by the back door,” said Miss Wright, and looked at the floor. “Miss Dinah was soon after me.”

“Nobody else was in the hall. You switched on the light, I suppose?”

“Yas, that’s right.”

“What did you do next?”

“Well, I looked round, like.”

“Yes. Have a good look round?”

“Aaw, yaas, I suppose so.”

“Back and front of the stage, what? Yes. And then?”

“I took off my mac. and put out my programmes, like, and counted up my change, see, for selling.”

“Yes?”

“Aw deer,” said Miss Wright, “it does give me such a turn when I think about it.”

“I’m sure it does.”

“You know! When you think! What I was saying to Charley Roper, you never know. And look, I never thought of it till this afternoon at the Children’s Service. I was collecting up hymn-books and it come all over me, so when I see Charley Roper hanging about outside the hall, I says, ‘Pardon me, Mr. Roper,’ I says, ‘but I have a piece of information I feel it my duty to pass on.’ ”

“Very proper,” said Alleyn, with a glance at Roper.

“Yass, and I told him. I told him I might be laying where she is, seeing what I did!”

“What did you do?”

“I sat down and played a hymn on that rickety old affair. Aw, well !”

“Did you play loudly or softly?”

“Well, well, both, ackshully. I was seeing which pedal worked best on that shocking old affair, see?”

“Yes,” said Alleyn. “I see. Did you put the pedal on suddenly and hard?”

“Aw no. Because one time the soft pedal went all queer because Cissie Dewry put her foot on it, so we always use it gentle-like. I didn’t try it but the bare once. The loud one worked better,” said Miss Wright.

“Yes,” agreed Alleyn. “I expect it would.”

“Well, it did,” confessed Miss Wright, and giggled again.

“But you did actually press the soft pedal down?” insisted Alleyn.

“Yass. Firm like. Not sharp.”

“Exactly. Was there a piece of music on the rack?”

“Oo yass, Miss Prentice’s piece. I never touched it. Truly!”

“I’m sure you didn’t. Miss Wright, suppose you were in a court of law, and someone put a Bible in your hand, and you were asked to swear solemnly in God’s name that at about twenty to seven last night you put your foot firmly on the left pedal, would you swear it?”

Miss Wright giggled.

“It’s very important,” said Alleyn. “You see, there would be a prisoner in the court on trial for murder. Please think very carefully indeed. Would you make this statement on oath?”

“Oh yass ,” said Miss Wright.

“Thank you,” said Alleyn. He looked at Templett. “I don’t think we need keep you, Dr. Templett, if you are anxious to get home.”

“I–I’ll drive you back,” said Templett.

“That’s very nice of you — I shan’t be long.” He turned back to Gladys Wright. “Did any one come in while you were playing?”

“I stopped when I heard them coming. Cissie Dewry come first and then all the other girls.”

“Did you notice any of the performers?”

“No. We was all talking round the door, like.” She rolled her eyes at Roper. “That was when you come, Mr. Roper.”

“Well, Roper?”

“They were in the entrance, sir, giggling and cackling in their female manner, sure enough.”

“Oo you are ,” said Miss Wright.

“And had any of the company arrived at that time?”

“Yes, sir,” said Roper. “Miss Copeland was there ahead of me, but she went to the back door same as all the performers, I don’t doubt. And the Pen Cuckoo party was there, sir, but I didn’t know that till I went round to back of stage when I found them bedizening their faces in the Sunday-school rooms.”

“So that there was a moment when the ladies were at the front door, talking, and the Pen Cuckoo party and Miss Copeland were behind the scenes?”

“That’s right, sir.”

“They were ringing and ringing at the telephone,” interjected Miss Wright, “all the time us girls was there.”

“And you say, Miss Wright, that none of the performers came into the front of the hall.”

“Not one. Truly.”

“Sure?”

“Yass. Certain sure. We would have seen them. Soon after that the doors were open and people started to come in.”

“Where did you stand?”

“Up top by the stage, ushering the two shillingses.”

“So if anybody had come down to the piano from the stage you would have seen them?”

“Nobody came down. Not ever. I’d take another Bible oath on that,” said Miss Wright, with considerable emphasis.

“Thank you,” said Alleyn. “That’s splendid. One other question. You were at the Reading Circle meeting at the rectory on Friday night. Did you go home by the gate into the wood. The gate that squeaks?”

“Oo no ! None of us girls goes that way at night.” Miss Wright giggled, extensively. “It’s too spooky. Oo, I wouldn’t go that way for anything. The others, they all went together, and my young gentleman, he took me home by lane.”

“So you’re sure nobody used the gate?”

“Yass, for sure. They’d all gone,” said Miss Wright, turning scarlet, “before us. And we used lane.”

“You passed the hall, then. Were there any lights in the hall?”

“Not in front.”

“You couldn’t see the back windows, of course. Thank you so much, Miss Wright. We’ll get you to sign a transcript of everything you have told us. Read it through carefully, first. If you wouldn’t mind waiting in the outer office I think I can arrange for you to be driven home.”

“Oo well, thanks ever so,” said Miss Wright, and went out.

ii

Alleyn looked at Templett.

“I ought to apologise,” he said, “I’ve given you a damned bad hour.”

“I don’t know why you didn’t arrest me,” said Templett with a shaky laugh. “Ever since I realised I’d left that bloody note in the dressing-room I’ve been trying to think how I could prove I hadn’t rigged the automatic. There seemed to be no possible proof. Even now I don’t see— Oh, well, it doesn’t matter. Nothing much matters. If you don’t mind, I’ll wait outside in the car. I’d like a breath of fresh air.”

“Certainly.”

Dr. Templett nodded to Blandish and went out.

“Will I shadow the man?” asked Roper, earnestly.

Blandish’s reply was unprintable.

“You might ask Mr. Bathgate to drive your witness home, Roper,” said Alleyn. “Let her sign her statement first. Tell Mr. Bathgate I’m returning with Dr. Templett. And Roper, as tactfully as you can, just see how Dr. Templett’s getting on. He’s had a shock.”